Apparatus for printing photogravure prints



NOV. 24, 1931. M STOESSEL 1,833,133

APPARATUS FOR PRINTING PHOTOGRAVUHE PRINTS Filed Au /10. 1928 s Sheet-Sheet 1 L E V Tia/anion Jix Stoesseb,

Nov. 24, 1931. STQESSEL 1,833,133

APPARATUS FOR PRINTING PHOTOGRAVURE PRINTS Filed Aug. 10, 1928 3 Sheets$heet 2 27111917101 mac Stoesseg NOV. Z4, 1931. STQESSEL 1,833,133

APPARATUS FOR PRINTING PHOTOGRAVURE PRINTS Filed Aug. 10, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 fililderzlor; mac 6308688? Patented Nov. 24, 1931 UNITED STATES MAX STOESSEL, F BIDGEWOOD, NEW JERSEY APPARATUS FOR PRINTING PHOTOGRAVUBE PRINTS Application filed August 10, 1928. Serial No. 298,642

My invention is an improved apparatus for printing photogravure prints from an ntaglio plate wrapped partly around a carrier cylinder and having its ends clamped in a recess thereof; the sheets to be printed being moved by a suitable impression cylinder into contact with and away from the printing surface.

The commercial success of photogravure 1 printing on sheet fed rotary presses has been greatly impeded by difficulties incident to the necessity for a recess or gap in the cylinder for clamping the ends of the intaglio plate. Such recesses have heretofore caused the use of complex mechanisms for shifting the inking and wiping mechanisms at the edges of the recess, of auxiliary wipers to eliminate the head of ink commonly left by the main wiping mechanism at the edge of the recess, or of caps or blocks for filling the recess. Further difficulties have resulted from smearing and from the off-setting of the freshly printed sheets delivered from the impression cylinder.

In accordance with my improvements, the inking and wiping mechanisms bear against the intaglio plate over its full contact surface and the hitherto objectionable cylinder recess is utilized as a receiver for the residue of surplus ink which fails to drop from the scraper, such residue being preferably delivered to a pouch or pocket in the recess and so shaped as to be able to retain a substantial quantity of scrapings during the rotation of the cylinder.

'Sheets printed from a plate so inked and wiped are free from smears or defects and they are retained in this condition and offsetting is avoided by their delivery to a carrier having pin point supports for the printed face of the sheets and from which points the sheets may be lifted by a drying blast by which they are thoroughly dried before deposit upon an automatically operable delivery table.

My improvements further involve the simplification of the structure and operation of the mechanism and the provision of a compact machine capable of large output and requiring a minimuin of attention, as will more fully appear from the following description and the accompanying drawings illustr'ating the characteristic features of my improvements in a preferred embodiment thereof. I

In the drawings, Fig. l is a left side elevation, partly in section, of a rotogravure press embodying my improvements; Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof with the feeding table removed; Fig. 3 is a detached fragmentary elevation, partly in section, of the inning and so scraping mechanisms; Fig. 4 is a detail of a bearing for the doctor shaft, and Fig. 5 is a. detached detail side view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of the printing roller, fountain, and associated parts in posle5 tions dili'erent from those shown in Fig. 1.

As illustrated in the drawings, the frame 1 has slidably mounted therein bearings 1 in which is journalled a shaft 2 of an impression cylinder 3. A gear 4, fixed to the shaft 2, 7o meshes with and is driven by the gear 5 fixed on the shaft 7 of the plate carrier or printing cylinder 6.

The bearings 1 may be shifted through the cam, lever and link mechanism 8 from the handle 9 to vary the position of the cylinder {5 relative to the cylinder 6 without disengagmg the gears 4 and 5, and the gear 5 may be driven t rough a suitable pinion from any appropriate source of power.

A feed table 10 is n'xed to the top of the frame 1 for supplying sheets to the cylinder 3, which has approxnnately one-half of its surface cut away to form a recess 11, in which is journalled a shaft 12 having fixed thereto clamping fingers or grippers 13 which are rocked by the shaft to engage and disengage the endof a sheet fed from the said table 10 t0 the padded surface of the cylinder 3. A blanket 14 has one end anchored in the recess 11 by the clamp 15 and the-other end rolled on the tightening shaft 16 journalled in the cylinder and held in its tightened position by pawl and ratchet mechanism 17.

Gages or stops 18, adjacent to the front edge of the feed table 10, are mounted in rods 19 which are adjustable in brackets 20 fixed to a shaft journalled in the arms 21 and rocked by a link 22 connected with a fulcrumed lever 23. The'levcr '23 is oscillated sheet admitted by the stops 18, by the engage- -ment of a grooved cam plate 26 on the shaft 12 with a suitable pin or boss 26 on the frame. The sheet so grasped is held in place against the cylinder by the elastic pressure strips 27 carried by the arm 21.

During the rotation of the sheet by the cylinder 3, it is brought into contact with the intaglio printing surface of a metallic plate 28 (Fig. 5) which is clamped to the segmental surface of the plate carrier or printing cylinder 6; the cylinder having a portion of its surface cut away to forin a recess or gap 29, into which the angularly bent ends of the printing plate are turned and clamped by the bars 30 and bolts 30'.

The printing surface of the plate 28 is coated with ink by a roller 31 journalled in bearings in arms 32 which are sleeved upon the shaft ends of a roller 33 journalled in the frame brackets 1a. The bearings forthe roller 31 are adjustable by the screws 31' and the arms 32 are adjustable by means of screws 32 swiveled in the frame brackets 1b.

The roller 33 is revoluble in the fountain 34 through the engagement of a gear 33' thereon with an idler gear 35 meshing with the gear 5, and rotates the roller 31 .through the gears 31a, 33a.

A sprocket 36, fixed in a channel of the roller 33, (Fig. 3) is connected by a sprocket chain 37 with the sprocket 38 on the end of a sleeve 39 journalled in a bracket 40 on the frame (Fig. 1). A member 41 is provided with end shafts onone of which is fixed a sleeve containing a cam groove 42 for the engagement of a pin 43 fixed in the sleeve 39, so that the rotation of the sleeve 39 reciprocates the member 41 longitudinally in the bearings 44.

The channeled body 45 of the member 41 has a flanged and slotted slide 46 adjustable on the bottom thereof by-the engagement of its upturned flange 47 by the head of a screw 48 threaded in the body 45. A wiping blade 49 and reenforcing blade 49 are fixed to and adjustable by the slide 46 and when adjusted the parts 46, 49 and 49 may be securely clamped in position by a clamping plate 50 and clamping screws 51 which are swiveled in the body 45, pass through slots 52 in the slide and blades and are threaded in the plate 50.

When the slide 46 is properly adjusted and clamped the flexible edge of the doctor 49 engages and wipes the surface of an etched plate clamped on the cylinder 6 and scrapes the surplus ink off the plate, the bulk of the surplus ink falling from the blade upon the roller 31 or back into the fountain.

The residue of the scrapings (which do not falland which'by accumulating on the edge of the plate and blade have been heretofore productive of much trouble by causing spotting and smearing) are scraped by the resilient blade 49 past the surface of the plate 28 which contacts with the work and down over the bent end 28 thereof within the -recess 29. Preferably a detachable pocket or container 29a is formed within the recess 29 with its lip 29?) in contact with the depressed plate section 28 so that the residual ink is carried into such pocket, which may have a body of circular cross section and a lip 290 for closing its mouth. The consistency of the ink usually used is such, however, that it is ordinarily unnecessary, in a run of reasonable length, to provide means for closing the lip 290 to prevent etilux from the pocket since the pocket has such shape as to receive a substantial quantity of residual ink without spilling during inversion in the rotation of the cylinder.

The ink fountain 34 is preferably pivotally mounted upon arms 53, 54, which are pivotally connected to a base 55 to permit the withdrawal of the fountain from the rollers and the cleaning of the latter, the fountain being held in the elevated position by the engagement of a notched lever 56' with the bar 57 connecting the arms 53, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5.

As the forward edge of the sheet being printed is carried upwardly by the cylinder 3, the clamps 13 are rocked, as a result of contact of the cam block 26 with the pin 26 to release the edge of the sheet. Simultaneously the edge of the sheet is seized by one of the sets of graspers or jaws 58' mounted on a rod 58 carried by the conveyor 59, the jaws cooperating with a second rod 58" carried by the conveyor. The graspers 58' are similar to the graspers l3 and are moved from open to closing position, and vice verse, by springs 58a and a cam block 586 on the rod 58, the cam block being engaged and thrown by lugs 58c and 58d at proper points in the cycle.

The chains of the conveyor 59 are carried by sprocket wheels 61 and 62 and are connected by rods 63 having adjustable bearings 64 provided with pointed pins 65 for supporting the printed surfaces of the sheet without smearing the printing.

The conveyor 59 carries the freshly printed sheets into the path of jets of heated air emitted from the apertured tubes 68, which are supplied with air compressed by a suitable blower 69 and heated by electric heaters 70 inserted in the conduits connecting the blower with the jet tubes.

A shield 71 is mounted on the frame adjacent to the sprocket wheel 62 and prevents displacement of the sheet on the conveyor as it is carried around the sprocket. If desired sufiicient strength to lift the sheet from the pins and support it in contact with its back against the shield, along which it is drawn by the movement of the jaws 58'.

The dried sheets are deposited on the receiving table 72 which slides on the rods 73 and is supported by tension members 74 which pass over the sheaves 75 and have thereon counterweights 76.

To operate the table, the sheaves 75 are mounted on. shafts 76, which are journalled in the frame, and have thereon worm wheels 77 operable by complementary worms on a shaft '28 provided at one end with a hand wheel 7 9 and having at the other end with a clutch 80. by which it may be connected with a clutch element 81 operable step by step through gearing 82 and a lever 83 actuated by a pin 84 on each. revolution of the cylinder 3.

It will be understood that, in the operation of my device, the sheets on the feeder 10 are positioned in sequence against the gages or stops 18 either manually orby means of a usual type of automatic feeder.

As the gages 18 are lifted by'the mechanism described, the rippers 13 are closed on the edge of a sheet%: 7 26 upon the cam block 26 of the shaft 12. The sheet is drawn by the grippers between the impression surface of the cylinder 3 and the printing plate 28 on the cylinder 6; the cylinder 3 having been positioned by the cam and lever mechanism 8 and 9 to exert the re uisite pressure.

t the beginning of the run, the screws 31' and 32 are adjusted to secure the desired contact of the inking roller 31 with the plate 28' and the screws 48 and 51 are adjusted to secure the desired angular pressure of the flexible blade 49 against the plate. These adj ustments ma be facilitated by providing on the respectively movable parts of the inking and wiping mechanisms scales and pointers to indicate their proper posit oning for plates of different thicknesses or characteristics.

The ink deposited upon the surface of the plate 28 by the roller 31 is scraped therefrom, leaving on the plate only the ink which has entered the etched or otherwise formed 1ntaglio lines. The bulk of the scraped ink falls from the blade and roller and the residue is scraped past the edge of-the contact surface into the receptacle 29a in the recess 29. The ink in the etched lines of the plate is deposited on the sheet passing between the cylinders and makes thereon a clean, sharp print.

The forward edge printed sheet is released y the action of the pin from the jaws 13- and seized by the jaws 58' and the sheets are dried and stocked automatically without smearing or offsetting as above described.

By my improvements, I amable to produce perfect work with a single inking roller and a single scraper reciprocating longitudinally of the plate carrier cylinder, the roller and scraper carriers being stationary during the complete rotation of the plate cylinder, and the complexity which has characterized machines heretofore proposed being consequently avoided.

The features of the invention herein described and illustrated but not claimed are claimed in a divisional application Serial N 0. 513,318 filed February 4, i931.

having described my invention, I claim:

I 1. 'A printing mechanism comprising a recessed cylinder, a printing plate secured on the surface of said cylinder and having its ends turned into said recess, a scraping plate for cleaning surplus ink ofi' said plate, and a detachable pocket located within said recess andprovidedj with a portion overlapping one of said ii -turned ends of the plate.

2. A- printing mechanism comprising a recessed cylinder, a printing plate curved about said cylinder and having ltS, ends turned into said recess, an ink receiving pocket in said recess and provided with an edge resting on one'of said in-turned ends, and a scraping plate spring pressed into contact with said plate and said edge of said pocket as said cylinder is rotated.

3. A printing mechanism comprising a cylinder, a printing plate curved about a portion of said cylinder, an ink receiving pocket insaid cylinder having a portion held against one end portion of said plate, and a scraping inder, a printing plate curved about a portion of said cylinder, a pocket within the cylinder adjacent to one end of said plate, said pocket having a restricted opening, and a scraping plate for cleaning surplus ink from said plate and causing it to flow into said pocket. 5. A printingmechanism comprising a cylinder, a printing plate curved about a portion, of said cylinder, a pocket mounted within the cylinder adjacent to and in engagement with one end of said plate, a lip on said pocket to retain ink within said pocket, and a scraping plate cooperating with said printing plate for causing surplus ink on said printing plate to flow into said pocket.

6. The combination of a cylinder, a printin plate curved about a portion of said c lin er, a sheet feedin and impression cylinder located above said printing plate cylinder, in ink pocket in said printing plate cylinder in contact with one end of said printing plate, and a scraping plate cooperating with said printing plate to cause the surplus 5 ink on said plate to flow into said pocket.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my name this 6th day of August, 1928.

MAX STOESSEL. 

